I have signed up for my first organized long distance bike ride, the San Diego Century, on May 21. I would like to complete an actual century this year, but this event is not going to be the time. I will be riding the 66-mile route. The full 103-mile route has got some climbing that I doubt that I can prepare for in a little over a month.
Other than my sporadic 30 mile round trip bike commutes, I've thus far managed two training rides. The first was to be about 34 miles in it's entirety, but between a hot day, a late start, and a general lack of fitness, I had to call in the broom wagon after only 23 miles completed. That was a little disheartening (especially since the ride was on part of the course route) but a successful 28 mile ride this past weekend has restored a modicum of confidence.
Showing posts with label ride. Show all posts
Showing posts with label ride. Show all posts
Friday, April 15, 2011
Friday, April 9, 2010
Thoughts on urban riding
I was thinking a little more on the ride I took last week around downtown San Diego. The pace I took was definitely more relaxed, and I quite enjoyed taking it slow. Part of this was because I really didn't have anywhere to be and I was trying to take in the surroundings of the city. I paused now and then to take some photos, and made a stop to sit and watch some men playing bocce in Little Italy. In some respects I don't think I was going slow enough and didn't stop to see enough sites. I should join the Down Townies ride one of these days.
Tuesday, April 6, 2010
Cesar Chavez Day bike ride
I had the day off on Cesar Chavez Day (March 31). I had to bring my car to the Saab shop (Swedish Auto AB), and while I waited for my car I thought I'd just hop on my bike and roam around downtown San Diego. I saw some old guys playing bocce in Little Italy. I accidentally did an impromptu tour of some of architect Jonathan Segal's buildings, though there are a lot of his buildings that I missed. Cool stuff. I had to stop by Velo Cult bike shop in South Park. I talked to the owner, Sky, for a few minutes and checked out some stuff I'd like to buy for my bike. I finally bought a bell for my bike, too. It was a fun day on the bike.
Check out the Flickr slide show below.
Check out the Flickr slide show below.
Tuesday, February 16, 2010
Ride to Nowhere in Particular
We went to Disneyland on President's Day. I rode Mr. Toad's Wild Ride twice with my son. You know, it's the journey to "nowhere in particular." Tuesday I took an additional day off to spend with the family since the kids are off all week and my wife's staying at home with them. But in the morning I made sure to get a bike ride in...to nowhere in particular.
Actually, I knew where I was going. There's a loop to do near my house of about 11.5 miles. I start in 4S Ranch, go through Del Sur and Santaluz and back around to 4S Ranch. I am working my way up to longer bike rides. This is less than the mileage I do on a round trip bike commute, but it is the longest single, non-bike commute I have done so far, I think.
The route alternates downhill and uphill sections with few flats to be had. I thought it would also be good training for the Black Mountain 15k trail run I signed up for in March. I want to preview the course before the actual race. The question is whether I should run it or do it by bike. Maybe both.
Actually, I knew where I was going. There's a loop to do near my house of about 11.5 miles. I start in 4S Ranch, go through Del Sur and Santaluz and back around to 4S Ranch. I am working my way up to longer bike rides. This is less than the mileage I do on a round trip bike commute, but it is the longest single, non-bike commute I have done so far, I think.
The route alternates downhill and uphill sections with few flats to be had. I thought it would also be good training for the Black Mountain 15k trail run I signed up for in March. I want to preview the course before the actual race. The question is whether I should run it or do it by bike. Maybe both.
Sunday, January 17, 2010
Get on the Bike
It's been over a week since I last rode my bike. I have been trying to designate Wednesdays to be my official "bike commute" day. I needed to stay home this past Wednessday so I missed my opportunity. Riding once a week sounds like a realistic goal, but there always seems to be something that comes up, legitimate or not. I had ridden two weeks in a row (I think a first for me), until this week, that is.
I'd been thinking that maybe I should change the tag line of my blog from "Developing a bike commute habit" to "The diary of an aspiring bike commuter" or "21 and more excuses not to ride" or "The sometimes bike commuter" or "How to blog about bike commuting without really riding." Please suggest others in comments if you've got any good ones I can use.
It can be tough finding time to ride when you're trying to balance family and work and whatever else. I've been thinking I should bring my bike in on days I don't ride to work and take some lunch rides. We'll see if that ever happens... Even if I can't ride to work, I think I just need to find a way to get out on the bike a little more and log some miles.
So, having said that I snuck out for a quick ride as the sun was setting this Saturday afternoon. I've been wanting to tackle this hill nearby my house. It is probably not much of a climb for most cyclists, but I figured it would be a bit of a litmus test to gauge my current riding fitness. The main climb is about 1.7 miles and about 330 feet in elevation. That's a 3.6% overall grade - like I said, probably nothing to a lot of people. I don't really know.
I've seen plenty of people climb this road. Several of those people, by appearances, were in much worse physical shape than I. I figured that I could probably make it up OK on my mountain bike with the luxury of spinning the granny gear on the front triple crank (of course I never tried), but since I got my new bike I've been a bit worried about my gear range on the low end. I've got a 50-11 combo on the high end and a 34-28 combo on the low end, which my co-worker kindly pointed out is a wider range on both ends than what his more traditional cyclocross 48/36 double crankset gives him.
As Miley Cyrus says, "It's all about the climb." (Hey, I've got a young daughter who incessantly watches the Disney Channel.) It turns out the climb was not so bad after all. It is broken into two sections with a nice flat in the middle that afforded me the chance to catch my breath. I was still straining a bit at the crest, but I was doing everything to stay out of that bottom combo, for nothing more than the illusion that I've got some minor semblance of strength in my legs.
Here's the route plotted with elevation. The ride took me about 38 minutes and covered over 8.6 miles. I hit about 34 mph on the way down the hill. I also made a few poor choices in the way I handled the bike on the road in relation to cars on the way home. (Incidentally, I'm currently listening to the audio version of Tom Vanderbilt's Traffic.) I'll be more careful in the future.
I'd been thinking that maybe I should change the tag line of my blog from "Developing a bike commute habit" to "The diary of an aspiring bike commuter" or "21 and more excuses not to ride" or "The sometimes bike commuter" or "How to blog about bike commuting without really riding." Please suggest others in comments if you've got any good ones I can use.
It can be tough finding time to ride when you're trying to balance family and work and whatever else. I've been thinking I should bring my bike in on days I don't ride to work and take some lunch rides. We'll see if that ever happens... Even if I can't ride to work, I think I just need to find a way to get out on the bike a little more and log some miles.
So, having said that I snuck out for a quick ride as the sun was setting this Saturday afternoon. I've been wanting to tackle this hill nearby my house. It is probably not much of a climb for most cyclists, but I figured it would be a bit of a litmus test to gauge my current riding fitness. The main climb is about 1.7 miles and about 330 feet in elevation. That's a 3.6% overall grade - like I said, probably nothing to a lot of people. I don't really know.
I've seen plenty of people climb this road. Several of those people, by appearances, were in much worse physical shape than I. I figured that I could probably make it up OK on my mountain bike with the luxury of spinning the granny gear on the front triple crank (of course I never tried), but since I got my new bike I've been a bit worried about my gear range on the low end. I've got a 50-11 combo on the high end and a 34-28 combo on the low end, which my co-worker kindly pointed out is a wider range on both ends than what his more traditional cyclocross 48/36 double crankset gives him.
As Miley Cyrus says, "It's all about the climb." (Hey, I've got a young daughter who incessantly watches the Disney Channel.) It turns out the climb was not so bad after all. It is broken into two sections with a nice flat in the middle that afforded me the chance to catch my breath. I was still straining a bit at the crest, but I was doing everything to stay out of that bottom combo, for nothing more than the illusion that I've got some minor semblance of strength in my legs.
Here's the route plotted with elevation. The ride took me about 38 minutes and covered over 8.6 miles. I hit about 34 mph on the way down the hill. I also made a few poor choices in the way I handled the bike on the road in relation to cars on the way home. (Incidentally, I'm currently listening to the audio version of Tom Vanderbilt's Traffic.) I'll be more careful in the future.
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